The bay area is a beautiful place. With lush forests, rich marshlands and great rivers and lakes, it is one of the most important habitats for many species of animals.
The same lush coastal and mountain regions that we love, with their fertile and moist soils, also bring with them many pests. A common pest being Scapanus Townsendii, also known as: the mole.
Moles may resemble rodents, but they are actually part of the Eulipotyphla order, which means “truly fat and blind”. Making them closely related to shrews.
Getting rid of Moles
There are several ways to get rid of moles from your Bay Area home. All of them include making your yard or garden undesirable to them. You can repel or exterminate moles in your yard in the following ways:
Control your weekly watering
Remove the available food source
Use repellants
Poison the pests with baits
Kill moles with traps
Make the space un-inhabitable
Don’t Over Water Your Yard
As mentioned, moles love soft, damp soil as it is easier to burrow into. Avoid over-watering your lawn to keep it undesirable to moles. Most grassy lawns only require an inch of water per week to maintain healthy foliage. This drier environment will go a long way to keep out moles as well as their natural food source.
Kill Grubs and insects
Unlike other yard pests, moles are not interested in your garden vegetables or the roots of trees and shrubs for their food source. Moles eat all manners of insects that are available in soft damp soil like grubs, earthworms, and various other lawn insects. There are several which help to repel these insects which will in turn keep away their natural predators.
Repellants
There are several repellants on the market that target moles. These can be convenient, inexpensive, and non-lethal alternatives to keeping moles out. Many of these repellants contain the non-toxic active ingredient, castor oil. Moles hate the taste of castor oil and re-locate to other areas. This may solve your problem temporarily and requires monthly application. Your yard will thank you, but your neighbor may not since the mole may just move next door.
Permanent Solutions to Mole Infestations
There are several repellants on the market that target moles. These can be convenient, inexpensive, and non-lethal alternatives to keeping moles out. Many of these repellants contain the non-toxic active ingredient, castor oil. Moles hate the taste of castor oil and re-locate to other areas. This may solve your problem temporarily and requires monthly application. Your yard will thank you, but your neighbor may not since the mole may just move next door.
Trapping Moles in the yard
Trapping is the most effective solution to mole control. With know how and elbow grease you can get rid of moles with well placed traps. There are several types of traps available that get rid of burrowing yard pests like moles.
Baiting
There are many baits on the market that ingeniously mimic the natural food sources of moles. The moles eat the poison bait placed in their burrows and die quickly. Though this method works well, it is inferior to trapping if you have pets on your property that may come into contact with the poisonous materials.